An Iranian-flagged vessel transporting anti-tank weapons to Shi’ite rebels was seized by Yemen’s navy off the country’s northwest coast. Five Iranian nationals, identified by Yemeni officials as weapons experts, were transfered to the capital city of Sanaa for investigation.

The Yemeni government has been alleging for some time now that Tehran has been training, equipping and funding Shi’ite Houthi rebels in its northwestern territory of Hajja.

Also: Iran also lost almost a dozen Revolutionary Guards when they strayed over the border into Pakistan and were captured by Pakistani border security. They were eventually released a number of hours later.

The government’s war against Shiite tribal rebels, who Sanaa claims are backed by Iran, drags on in a savage stalemate that may be widening with the reported involvement of fighters from Hezbollah, Tehran’s Lebanese proxy.

Claims by the government that it is beating the rebels in the mountains of Saada province along the border with Saudi Arabia are wearing a little thin as the fighting escalates.

Amid stepped-up army operations, the Shiite Zaidi rebels, known as Houthis after the clan that leads them, claim they shot down two air force strike jets in four days earlier this month — a MiG-21 on Oct. 2 and a Sukhoi Su-22 on Oct. 5…